First Date
by JessicaBrennan
Summary: A/U-Tris Prior didn't go as planned, fortunately FOUR her. For Valentine's Week 2019.


_**(A/N-Special thanks to Lynn for beta reading this. Day 4 of Valentine's Week.)**_

* * *

As Tris Prior exited her building she heard someone say something behind her, but she kept going. She was looking through her date's photos that she had started talking to on Tinder. She made her way to the bar they agreed to meet and waited and waited.

"Eric," She read, scrolling through his photos. There was the obligatory bathroom mirror selfie, complete with chiseled abs. In another one, he was holding a pint of beer and grinning slyly at the camera, like he wanted to fuck it.

The profile itself wasn't exactly a winner. Gym, tan, and pay for someone else to do my laundry, it read, with a little winking face.

So, okay, maybe she had only swiped right because of that grin. Sue me. This new app had been bringing in the same undateable guys as all the others she'd tried—despite the fact that at least four of her coworkers raved about how different this one was, how the guys were such high quality. Tris figured if she had to go on another bad date, at least it could be with a hottie.

But now karma was being a bitch, and it looked like she was about to get stood up. Again.

She slid her drink across the bar and sighed at her reflection as the bartender refilled her glass. She looked smoking hot tonight. All that effort for nothing.

She reviewed her recent candidates. There was the programmer last month who told her in great detail about how he "games the game." In this case, what he meant was he hacked the codes behind the app and programmed it to send him pictures of only the most popular chicks. Tris guessed she should be flattered that she was included, but she was mostly creeped out by his obsession with finding the hottest girlfriend. "It's why I always end up dating chicks way out of my league," he explained with a wink. Then he proceeded to show her photos of his most recent ex.

"She is very hot," Tris agreed, silently adding, and how on earth did she decide to sleep with you?

After that date, there was the professional body-builder who spent most of the date trying to sell her into his protein-smoothie pyramid scheme. Then came the insurance salesman who got a little too detailed talking about life insurance schemes—Double Indemnity red flags, much?

There was the finance broker who bought her one drink, then invited her back to his place… And when she declined, he complained so loudly about the expense of the drink he'd bought her that she frog-marched him to the nearest ATM, took out cash, and threw a twenty in his face.

Which brought her here. Tonight. Waiting on yet another guy who would…

"Miss?"

Tris looked up to find the bartender returning her card. "What's wrong, was it declined?" Shit. She paid this one off last month. It definitely still had room on the balance.

"No, miss. It's just that the gentleman on the far end has covered your tab."

Tris glanced down the bar to find Mr. Shirtless Bathroom Selfie himself lifting a glass in her direction.

Okay, so maybe he's not the worst. There could still be hope.

She picked up her drink and headed down the bar to meet him. "Eric?"

He leaned in for the cheek kiss/one-armed hug and Tris had to awkwardly shuffle her drink to avoid spilling it down his shirt front.

"Tris, you look hot." Eric said.

"Thanks, so do you want to get a table?" Tris asked.

"I'm good here," he said. He glanced over her head at the selection. "Besides, not like we'll be here long."

You could say that again, Tris thought. She cleared her throat, resisted the urge to bolt off of this stool here and now. There was no man hot enough to make up for the way his breath smelled either, like stale beer and sour cream and onion potato chips. "Busy day at the office?" She asked, following his gaze mostly so she could turn away from him.

He leaned harder against her leg. Her toes tingled, starting to go numb. "Huh? No, I had the day off. Just got back from the beach. Hey, bartender?" He snapped his fingers. Actually, snapped them, until the bartender glanced back at them and, with an apologetic glance in her direction, headed their way.

"One more scotch on the rocks," Eric said.

That task done with, he turned to her and brushed her hair back over her shoulder. "So, Tris…"

Realizing that she couldn't keep staring at the bar forever, Tris turned to face him, trying on a smile.

"Damn you're gorgeous. You get that often?"

"I, uh… Thanks, I guess."

"How about we get out of here, huh? Enough small talk for one night, am I right?" He winked at her.

Enough small talk being what, all five sentences they had exchanged? Tris sucked in a deep breath. "Listen, Eric, you seem really nice and all…"

"Of course, so let's skip the boring part and head straight to my place." He downed the second scotch he ordered in one large gulp, then latched onto her arm.

"It's been a really long day for me, actually—lot going on at work. I'm just going to head home."

"That's cool, we can go to yours." He leaned in, brushed her hair back from her forehead, and they were suddenly way too close, only inches between them.

Tris executed a tricky side twist off the bar stool to grab her purse. "I think I'm just going to head back alone. Thanks for the drink."

"Seriously?" His expression shifted now. She didn't know if it was the drink or the rejection that was injuring his frail masculine ego, but either way, she didn't like the look in his eye. "Wait, wait, wait, Tris." He took her hand in his. His grip was strong. Too strong. "We got off on the wrong foot. Let me make it up to you." With a single tug, he pulled her closer and leaned over her, eyes intent on her face. "It's just, I didn't expect you to be so… You know. Hot. From your profile, you sounded like a book nerd, so—"

She wrenched her hand from his with effort. "Eric, I'm leaving."

"Don't be like that! Come on, we can have some fun."

"Goodbye, Eric." She went past him, out of the bar.

Of course, he jogged after her.

"At least let me call you a cab," he insisted.

"I'm fine on my own, seriously." But he ignored this and jogged ahead of her to the corner. He flagged down a taxi, and she watched him lean in the window talking to the guy. God only knew what he was saying.

He opened the back door of the cab for her, but she hesitated, looking over her shoulder.

"You take this one, I'll call another," Tris said. But a glance up and down the street showed there won't be another cab for quite a while—Wall Street tended to be dead at this hour.

"I insist." Eric held the door open a little wider.

With a sigh, Tris climbed in.

He kept the door open, blocking it with his thigh. "You know, if we go to mine, I can fuck you properly, Tris. It's been a long time since anyone's bent you over, hasn't it?" He smirked.

It had, actually, but he didn't need to know that. "Thanks for the offer." She yanked on the door handle, trying to close it. That proved futile with him in the way.

"You aren't gonna get a better one." He leaned down and she got another strong whiff of onion breath. "A girl like you should be jumping at the chance to let a guy like me bone her."

Tris cast a glance at the front of the taxi, but the driver was studiously ignoring this conversation, deeply concentrating on the one in his own wireless headset. "Again, I said thank you but no thank you." She tugged on the door, hoping against hope that Eric would finally let this drop.

Behind them, another taxi pulled up, and to her immense relief, Eric waved at it. It pulled over and he cast her one last long, dark look.

"You'll regret this," he said as he stepped away from the door.

"I already do." Tris says as her taxi pulled away.

A few minutes later her taxi pulled up outside her building and she paid the driver, then pushed the door open. For a second, she just leaned back to gaze at her building. She was lucky as hell to score this place a couple years ago during a slow season and a market down-turn.

Just as she was about to head into her building, she heard the most unwelcome sound possible behind her.

"Tris!"

She turned around slowly, the hairs on the back of her neck standing up, her muscles tensed.

Eric stood on the curb, beside his taxi, which he clearly just asked to follow her all the way here. "Look, I know I came across a little strong earlier. I just wanted to say sorry and also that maybe we can try again…" He took a step toward her, staggering a little.

Tris underestimated how drunk he was. Or maybe he showed up to the bar a few drinks in and that whiskey pushed him over the edge. "Eric, listen, I'm just going to go inside now…"

"Wait," he said, and it came out more of a growl than a plea. Before she could react, he launched himself across the pavement at her. Tris had just enough time to take a few steps backward toward her door before he caught her, one hand wrapped around her wrist, the other on her shoulder. She tried to wrench herself free, go for her phone in her purse, but she couldn't. His grip was too strong.

He pushed her against the glass beside the door of her building, his breath hot on her face. "You don't have to be a bitch, Tris. You can be nice about this."

"Eric, please let go, you're hurting me."

"I'll let go when I know you're going to take me seriously. I'm a fucking catch, you don't just walk away from a fucking catch."

She cast a wild-eyed glance over his shoulder. But at this hour, her neighborhood was pretty quiet. That was what she liked about it. Liked, anyway. Right now, it was working against her. There was nobody in sight.

"Get off of me," Tris said, very slowly.

He smirked. "Make me."

That was when a heavy weight collided with them.

Tris staggered against the glass, barely managing to keep herself upright by bracing on the window with both palms. She heard grunting, shouts, but all she registered was the fact that there was no one grabbing her anymore.

She pushed herself upright. There was a bruise already forming around her wrist, that was going to leave a bruise. When she looked up, she saw two figures in front of her: Eric and the back of another man. As the man turned to look at her she saw who it was. She saw it every single day, at least twice a day.

Her neighbor down the hall.

Tobias Eaton was a lawyer who mainly kept to himself. When there had been a party at the apartment for everyone to meet a few months back, he had came but quickly left.

Tobias threw a punch now, a mean right hook that connected squarely with Eric's jaw. But Eric was so drunk, that even though she heard that punch land with a smack, it didn't slow him down. His brain probably didn't even register the pain.

Eric roared and shoved Tobias with both hands. Her heart leaped into her throat. Eric was huge, big enough to break him in half. But Tobias twisted out of Eric's grip and kneed him in the gut, which momentarily slowed Eric down, winding him.

Thankfully, it looked like he was built from stronger stuff, too.

Eric twisted out of his grip and went for one last punch, but Tobias was on top of this. He dodged the swing easily and felled Eric with a single hit to the temple. She winced as Eric collapsed to his knees, holding his head.

Then Tobias turned to face her, running a hand through his short-cut blond hair.

Oh.

Oh.

How did she never notice his face before?

"Are you all right, Ms. Prior?" Tobias was asking, his expression all concern.

She was now, she thought stupidly. But outwardly, she just nodded.

"Go inside, Ms. Prior. I'll handle this."

Tris just kept staring at him, confused. Between the chiseled jawline, the sharp cheekbones, the intense blue eyes, she couldn't figure out how she never noticed him. His shirt was unbuttoned at the top now, disheveled from the fight. It revealed just a hint of his chest beneath, but from the shape of it, not to mention the way he just took out that brick house of a stalker, it was clear he was ripped.

Finally, a taxi pulled up, and Tobias unceremoniously deposited Eric in the backseat. She watched him pay the driver extra for taking the bleeding drunk guy. When he turned back to her, his blue eyes were piercing. "Ms. Prior, please, you've had a shock. You should go upstairs and relax. I can handle this."

"Tris," she said.

His brow furrowed slightly. "I'm sorry?"

"My name is Tris." She pushed off the glass wall and took a few shaky steps toward him. Clearly her body hadn't yet received the message that the coast was clear.

"Whoa, careful now." He caught her arms to steady her. Tris tried to ignore how warm and reassuring his large hands felt, wrapped gently around her biceps. "You're still running on adrenaline. You should sit down."

"Thank you," she told him as he guided her toward the double doors. He kept one hand wrapped around her waist as he opened the door and aimed for the settee just inside. Tris always wondered what this chair was for. It was not like anybody hung out in the lobby much.

"It was nothing," he waved it off, but Tris shook her head.

"You saved me."

"Just doing what anyone should do…" He paused. Caught her eye and held it for a long moment, as he gently lowered her onto the seat. Tris collapsed onto it, trying to hide her relief as she finally let her legs relax. They did not want to keep holding her upright, not after all that. "Tris," he amended, gaze still fixed on her.

She fought the urge to shiver. His voice had an English accent to it.

"Your job shouldn't have to involve fending off crazy attackers," Tris replied with a sigh. "Sorry about him."

"Don't you dare apologize," he said, nearly cutting her off. He looked dead serious as he glanced over her head, and she knew he was looking back through the glass windows at where Eric was a moment ago. "I see shitheads like him all the time—drunk stockbroker trust fund kids who think they deserve whatever they want." He glanced back at her. "Or whoever."

Tris grimaced and bit the inside of her lip. "The worst part is, I'm not even sure that was the worst first date I've ever been on."

She expected him to laugh, but instead, he only looked angrier. He took a seat next to her on the settee, shaking his head.

"Men in this city can be absolute scum. They don't know how to treat a real woman."

Tris swallowed hard. Suddenly, with him so close beside her, it was getting difficult to focus. Her blood was still pumping hard, the adrenaline making her hands quivery, her feet felt numb and a little shaky. Though, it might not all be adrenaline from Eric's attack anymore. It was hard to tell, what with the way her hormones were reacting to the heat pouring off of Tobias' body and the proximity of his strong arms, his biceps visible through his shirt.

Tris forced herself to shrug, playing it nonchalant. "There are assholes everywhere, I guess."

"Not like here," he scowled. "And you shouldn't have to deal with them, anyway. You don't deserve that." He cast a sideways glance at her, their eyes locking once more. "You deserve a man who treats you right. Someone who understands your value. Who knows what a woman like you needs."

"And what's that?" Tris asked. Somehow, her voice had dropped to a whisper. She didn't remember giving it permission to do that. Then again, she didn't remember leaning toward Tobias either, and she sure didn't remember giving herself permission to stare at his lips, just inches away from hers, slightly parted as though he was about to say something else—or maybe just close the gap between them and crush his lips against her, kiss her until she forgot about tonight.

"Respect," he replied. His eyes dipped down a little too, glancing at her mouth, then back to her eyes. Tris licked her lips and his eyes flickered again. "Care. Whatever you desire, honestly."

Her throat felt tight, her mouth dry. She sucked in a deep breath of air and turned her head a little, glanced around the lobby, mostly for an excuse to break the tension between them. But dammit, his scent followed her. He smelled amazing—like crisp fall air, and something else under it all, something heady and masculine and entirely him.

"Yeah. Well," She said, eyes still on the empty lobby. "Guys like that are in short supply."

"Depends where you look," he said, and she could still feel his eyes on her, burning into her, even without looking at him. It was a physical sensation, as if he was touching her, caressing her with his gaze.

"Definitely not where I met him," Tris said with a half-laugh. "Stupid dating app."

Tobias laughed. Damn him, even his laugh was sexy, full-throated, and deep. "Which app are you using?" he asked.

Tris told him, and in response, he pulled out his phone and unlocked the screen. Showed her the same app on his background.

This time, she laughed too. "Had any better luck with the ladies on there than I have with the guys?"

He smirked. "Well, I can't say any women have stalked me home after dates," he admitted. Then shook his head. "But no, I haven't exactly met a lot of decent matches lately."

"Do share. Maybe it'll help me feel better about my horrible luck."

He laughed and leaned back on the settee. "Oh god, where to start. There was the girl who asked me to sign an NDA before we could start dating—she brought triplicate copies to the bar."

Tris burst out laughing.

His grin widened as he thought back. "Hmm, and then there was the woman wearing a wedding ring. When I called her out on it, she insisted it was a fake diamond, that she just wears it to fend off guys hounding her. Sure, lady. And then one girl spent the whole date showing me photos of her five cats…"

By the time he had finished recounting his dating stories, and she had shared a few of her own, they were both laughing so hard her sides hurt. He was halfway through another story, one about one of his friends whose date wet the bed on him, when a sharply shrill voice called out to him.

"Mr. Eaton, it sure is nice to see you," Jeanine Matthews said.

"Hello, Jeanine. How are you?" Tobias asked.

"Wonderful now," she said as she looked him over, then her gaze finally saw Tris.

Tris walked up to the counter and leaned against it. Ms. Matthews glared at her. "Tobias just helped me out with a creepy date," She explained. "The guy followed me home, tried to attack me…"

"Well, weren't you lucky. See you around Tobias," Jeanine said as she went to the elevators to head up to her apartment, but not before giving Tris an evil look.

Tris looked back over at Tobias and couldn't help the smile that was forming on her face. She had to put an end to this. She couldn't be flirting with him. What if things went badly between them?

"I'll quit distracting you," She said, her tone apologetic. "Thanks again, for everything."

"Anytime," he replied, then stopped himself, shaking his head. "Although, of course, I hope you never have to deal with a piece of shit like that guy ever again."

"Here's hoping."

"Yes," he agreed, eyes suddenly sincere again, locked on her. "Here's hoping."

With that, she left him. She wiped her palms on her jeans as she left. Ignored the fresh sparking in her nerve endings. This time, she definitely couldn't blame it on adrenaline or fear. This time, she knew exactly what was causing it. But that was the worst possible idea. If she hooked up with Tobias and things went sour, they'd go really sour. So, she pushed her floor in the elevator, let the doors close behind her, and tried not to think about the insanely hot man she just discovered hiding down the hall from her.

***PAGEBREAK***

At midnight. Tris still couldn't sleep. Turned out adrenaline plus a healthy dose of flirting made for one long, sleepless kind of night.

She pulled out her phone and flipped through her messages. She had filled in her BFFs at work about the date already, blowing up their group text with details. They were appropriately shocked and appalled on Tris' behalf. Christina even promises to buy her first round at their standing team happy hour on Thursday.

You'd think it would be the stalker distracting her, keeping her up. Instead, it was images of Tobias. His piercing blue eyes as he looked her over, made sure that she was okay after that attack. The flirty glint in those same eyes when he told her that she needed a man who treated her right. Someone who would give her whatever she desires.

Tris shivered and rolled back over in bed. Tapped on the little icon for the dating app. If nothing else, it would occupy her mind. Distract her from thinking thoughts that she should definitely not be thinking about her neighbor.

Like what those strong arms would feel like wrapped around her, or what his lips would taste like on hers. Not to mention, judging by the size of his hands, he had got to be packing a pretty nice package in those pants…

Tris scolded herself internally and focused on the app. Don't think about him. She tried to force him out. Tried to focus on the guys scrolling past on her screen instead. But staring at boring finance broker after boring finance broker got old. They all had the same photos on their profiles, she swore. Shirtless pic to display their no doubt carefully gym-cultivated abs, another pic of them drinking beer with their bros to prove they have friends, one carefully cropped photo with their arm around someone not in the image, to prove that they've dated chicks before, and one definitely posed head shot that showed off their cheekbones at the best possible angle.

None of them added much detail to their profiles beyond that. They were all full of one-line quotes, usually from action movies. That, or witticisms such as "I'm the one you've been looking for." Very convincing.

She swiped left through at least a dozen profiles, and she was debating giving up and just rolling back over to try and sleep when a different image popped up. Unlike most of the other guys, this photo appeared to be a candid one, un-posed. He was looking past the photographer, at something in the background. He was standing on a street corner that she recognized, just a few blocks away, outside her favorite deli. He probably took this on a lunch run, or maybe before his shift started.

She gasped.

It was Tobias.

Tris tapped open his profile. There were only three photos. The first one, the candid, showed off his cheekbones at just the right angle, not to mention really accentuated his sharp blue eyes catching the sunlight so they seemed to glow in the photo. Then there was another picture of him indoors—his apartment maybe? This one wasn't a candid, he was smiling at whoever was taking it. The effect was that it looked like he was gazing straight out of her phone at her. She felt two things simultaneously, a red-hot fire in the pit of her belly and an equally strong and startling sensation of jealousy. Whoever took this photo, she hated them. For no other reason than that Tobias was smiling at them like that.

The third photo was at a beach somewhere. There was a few guys in the photo, but unlike most dudes' profiles, she could pick Tobias out immediately. He stood out like that, impossible to look away from. He was in the middle of a volleyball game, mid-jump in fact, and goddamn, did it make his body stand out. He was in swimming trunks of course, and it highlighted perfectly the washboard cut of his abs, straight down to the muscular V pointing down to his groin.

Tris swallowed hard and found herself wishing that her phone had a higher resolution display. She'd like to zoom in on this photo, see exactly where that V is pointing, if you could see the outline of him through those trunks…

Tris shook herself. Tapped back on his profile page.

And she had to laugh at his username. AtYourService.

She hesitated, finger hovering over the screen. She remembered the stern talking-to she gave herself in the lobby earlier tonight. This was a bad idea. But she rarely ever listened to herself. Especially not when confronted with a guy like Tobias. So, she slid her thumb right, and hit yes on him.

Her phone buzzed almost immediately.

You have a new match!

He already swiped right on her too.

She licked her lips. Opened the chat window that had popped up. Her fingers hovered over the keys. What did she say? Thanks again for saving my ass tonight?

Her phone buzzed once more. Looked like he spared her the trouble of figuring out an opening line.

Trouble sleeping? his message read.

Tris glanced at her bedside clock and her eyes widened. Shit. It was almost 1am already. When did that happen?

JustTris: Eventful night. I'm finding it pretty hard to doze off now, yeah.

AtYourService: Me too. I keep thinking about this beautiful woman who I had to save from a raving madman.

JustTris: Sounds exciting. What happened next, did you sweep her off her feet?

AtYourService: Believe me, I wanted to. Sadly, I think she only sees me a neighbor. Bodyguard, maybe.

JustTris: I find that hard to believe. You seem like you have a lot more than just one side to you.

AtYourService: Trust me, there's a lot more than you see.

JustTris: Don't tease me.

AtYourService: You mean like this?

That last message came with a photo attached. He was leaning back on a stool, his shirt untucked, his pants hanging loosely on his hips.

She swallowed hard.

JustTris: Exactly like that.

Tris held her breath when she hit send on this. The alarm bells were still ringing in her head, bad idea, bad idea, but it was late and she was getting punch drunk on exhaustion, not to mention her hormones were still raging from earlier.

AtYourService: So, you don't want to see what's underneath?

Another picture came through. In this one, he had pulled his shirt up, just far enough to show his washboard abs and the waistband of his boxers. Goddamn. His stomach was flat, rippling, and looked even more delicious close-up than it did in that beach photo. Tris wanted to run her hands over those abs. Trace that glorious V-line straight down into those boxers and…

Argh.

JustTris: I thought I said don't tease me…

AtYourService: My bad. In that case, are you allowed to tease me instead? Because I have to admit, I've spent all night wondering what was underneath my damsel in distress's clothes…

She shivered. Cast a glance down at herself. She was in PJs now, and they were not exactly sexy. Just a baggy T-shirt and her gym shorts. But her dresser was within reach, and inside it, the lacy lingerie that she reserved for special occasions.

Tris took a deep breath. What could it hurt? Just one picture. It was only polite after all. He sent her one first. She pulled off her T-shirt, slipped on the lingerie and arranged it so it didn't actually show anything, not her face and not anything completely untoward either. The result was sexier than she'd expected, to be honest. It was all black lace and a hint of cleavage, and when she hit send, she was actually not even embarrassed. She looked hot.

He replied almost instantly. There was no message this time, just a photo of him standing beside the stool now, his boxers on full display. And through them, Tris could already make out the outline of his hard cock, straining against the fabric. She traced her fingers along her phone screen, and she was surprised to find a trickle of sweat inching between her breasts. Because goddamn, she wanted to touch him. Feel that cock with her own hands.

AtYourService: Still want me to quit teasing, naughty girl?

JustTris: I might be coming around to it. I'd need one more photo to be sure…

He didn't disappoint. She opened the next picture with a skip in her breath. Holy hell. He was huge.

His cock was thick, swollen with lust, and wrapped in his strong fist. To judge by him, they weren't kidding when they said large hands equal large everything else. He was glorious, long and curved slightly upward, with thick veins that stood. More than anything, she wanted to taste him. Lick along his length, swirl her tongue around the tip of him, then slowly take him into her mouth… Would he even fit?

She wanted to find out.

JustTrs: Should you be undressing like this?

AtYourService: Going to lodge a complaint? ;)

JustTris: Oh, definitely not.

AtYourService: That's good. Because it's your fault, you know.

JustTris: My fault? How so? I am perfectly innocent here.

AtYourService: That lacy nightgown says otherwise. And now you've gone and made me rock-hard just thinking about peeling it off of you…

JustTris: Well, you're the one who started it. Now I'm getting turned on just looking at how hard you are.

AtYourService: Definitely seems like you're the one doing the teasing. Because now I'm thinking about how you would taste.

Tris slid her hand under the covers. Touched herself as she responded one-handed.

JustTris: I wonder if you would fit inside me.

AtYourService: I'd go nice and slow. Lick you until you couldn't stand it anymore, until you were begging for me, and then I'd push into you slowly, an inch at a time…

She spread her lips and swirled her finger through the wetness accumulating there, all the while imagining it was him.

JustTris: When you finally slid all the way inside me, I'd wrap my legs around your waist.

AtYourService: I'd have you up all night, Tris. Every way you want. Hard and rough enough that you wouldn't be able to walk straight the next day.

JustTris: Yes, Tobias. That's what I want you to do to me.

She barely managed to finish typing the last sentence. She was too concentrated on her folds, she pressed down hard on her clit with the heel of her hand, rubbing it at the same time.

AtYourService: I'm touching myself right now, thinking about you. Are you touching yourself?

That reply was enough to send Tris over the edge. Her body shook as she came, and she let out a faint cry, alone in the darkness of her apartment.

But now that she had, and the hormones still continued to rage, as frustrated as she was, she grimaced. What was she doing? Exactly what she had promised herself she shouldn't. Seeing her name on the screen next to his made her realize just what a terrible idea this was. She loved this apartment. It was her home. She couldn't risk it for a fling, even if it was with a hottie like Tobias.

JustTris: I have to go. I'm sorry.

She logged out of the app before she could give into temptation any more. When she rolled over to shut off her light, she squinted at the time and grimaced even harder. Shit. Past two in the morning.

Tomorrow was going to be a very long day.

***PAGEBREAK****

Tris rolled into her office five minutes before their first meeting was set to begin. Just enough time to pour herself a large cup of black coffee in the break room before she could sidle up to the office where they meet every Friday morning to review their campaigns from last week and plan for the next.

One girl at the back of the room, a new hire Tris didn't know very well, Nita-something, was staring at her blatantly. Tris did a quick check, but no, she remembered to button all of her buttons. Huh. Weird.

The day drug on. To top it all off, none of her usual post-work happy hour buddies were free tonight. Christina was out with her boyfriend as usual. Which left her stranded in midtown with nowhere to go. She heaved a sigh and started heading for the train when her phone buzzed. Another message on the app. She hesitated for a fraction of a second before she tapped it open.

It was Tobias.

Her stomach flipped, the sensation both nervous and pleasant at once. She opened their conversation, her face flushing as she remembered just how hot and heated this got last time. But if she was expecting just another sext, that was not what she found.

AtYourService: Hope I didn't keep you up too late last night. How's your Friday going?

JustTris: To be honest, not great. Work was pretty shitty. All kinds of projects exploding at once.

AtYourService: Would coffee cheer you up? I know a great little place not far from the building, over on Madison. And I happen to be free this evening.

Tris smiled. Sure, the bad idea alarms were still going off, but they were buried deep in the back of her mind now, under a few layers of her crappy workday, her friends all being busy, and, admittedly, her hormones still in full-on raging after last night's photo exchange.

JustTris: Actually, yeah, coffee sounds great. Meet you there?

He sent her the address and she got onto the subway train with a renewed pep in her step. She checked herself out in the mirror and fixed her hair, added a touch of lipstick. Her favorite distraction when she felt tired, bright red lipstick because then people wouldn't notice your other flaws.

The coffee shop Tobias picked turned out to be a cute place a few blocks from her apartment that Tris had been eyeballing for months. It opened last summer but she hadn't made it over here yet. It was funny how you get set in your routines. You didn't even know that they needed breaking until someone comes along and smashes them.

And hell, if Tobias wasn't doing a damn good job of that right now. The moment she stepped through the front doors into the cozy little café, she saw him. He was impossible to miss now that she was finally tuned into his frequency. His eyes caught hers from across the room and nearly pinned her to her spot in the doorway. Her heartbeat sped up and suddenly it was hard to focus on anything but the extremely hot man standing up, drawing out a chair for her, eyes locked on hers all the while. In the warm café lighting, his cheekbones stood out sharper than ever. He looked sexy as hell in jeans and a T-shirt, relaxed and off duty, like a completely different person from the hottie who saved her last night.

Was it only last night? It felt like so long ago now. Like so much had already changed.

For one thing, she had finally woken up to notice the guy she had spent the last two years walking right past, blind as a bat. Tris took a seat across from him and looked down to find he had already ordered. There was a latte cooling in front of her, a little heart drawn into the foam.

She smiled and lifted it to tap against his in a cheers. "How did you know my drink?"

"Educated guess. I figure, you're a twenty-something bookworm with good taste, you probably like your coffee strong with a dash of sweet."

She glanced into his cup and find he was drinking the same thing. "Great minds think alike," Tris pointed out.

His smile widened. "But fools seldom differ."

That caused her to laugh. Everybody always forgot the second half of that quote. "Touché," She said, and took a long sip of her latte. It was delicious.

"So, tell me all about your shitty day," he said, leaning back in his chair. It showed off his muscles to perfect advantage, which she was sure was the point. She couldn't help letting her gaze wander down across his chest, along his arms, before she forced herself to look back at his face.

He let his eyes wander too, and he didn't seem to care that she could see him checking her out. Tris shivered. There was something sexy about a man who was blatantly turned on by you and didn't mind that you know it. His gaze lingered on her curves, her dress, then darted back to her face.

"You really want to hear about my crappy work problems?" Tris countered.

He laughed. "Only if you want to talk about them."

She heaved a sigh. "Where to even start?"

"Start with what's got you so stressed out that your shoulders are up to your ears," he suggested.

Tris forced herself to relax her posture, shooting him another glance. Normally guys weren't interested in hearing about her day-to-day life. But okay, she would give him a try. She told him about how her boss was annoyed at her for missing her deadline and how her project fell below par.

"But you don't normally have a tricky relationship with her?" he asked.

Tris nodded. "Normally we get on great. Normally I perform better than this."

"Well everyone has off days. She understands that, I'm sure."

She could feel herself bobbing her head. Why was he so easy to talk to? Tris blinked and shook her head, pulling herself out of her own world. "But this has got to be boring for you," She admitted, realizing they had just spent the last 15 minutes talking about her office politics.

"If you'd prefer, we can change the subject. Talk about something more distracting."

"You do seem good at distracting women," she replied with a smirk, letting her gaze drip over his body.

"Only when I'm inspired." He leaned closer across the table and those blue eyes drew her in again, magnets that were impossible to tear herself away from. "And I must say, you are extremely inspiring, Tris Prior."

She raised an eyebrow, grinning. "What exactly do I inspire in you?"

"Dirty as hell fantasies for one thing." He hooked a leg around hers under the table and slid his calf against hers. Tris caught her breath, braced herself against the table with both hands. But he let her go almost right away and leaned back in his seat, casual and nonchalant once more, as though he didn't just say that. "For another, you make me want to know more about you. I mean, I know the basics. Name, address of course..."

Her cheeks flushed bright red at the reminder of how they know one another.

He was leaning forward again, and so was she, unable to stop herself. He was not just magnetic, he had a gravitational pull of his own. "After all, I never would have guessed you were so naughty, Ms. Prior."

"I never would have guessed you were so dynamic, Tobias."

"Eaton," he said, filling in the unspoken blank.

Her cheeks flushed. "We seem a little uneven here, Tobias Eaton. You know way more about me than I do you. So, come on, share some details."

"What do you want to know?" He tilted forward, so close to her suddenly that his lips grazed her ear as he whispered. "Beside the size of my cock?"

Tris' cheeks burned red-hot now, on fire. But the rest of her was burning too. Especially her belly and the growing tight spot between her legs. She swore, when he talked dirty, she could feel it like an electric shot straight to her core. "That's definitely on the list," She murmured with a grin. "I mean, I do have that one lovely photo, but I have to say, I'm tempted to request more…"

"Done," he said without a moment's hesitation. Her eyebrows rose. She must look surprised because his grin deepened and he added, "Of course, that means I get to ask for something in exchange."

Tris turned her face a little, so their cheeks were almost touching now. They were close enough that she could feel the heat radiating from his skin, and she caught his scent again, every bit as intoxicating as it was last night. Salty and sweet all at once. "And what is it you desire, Mr. Eaton?"

"Turnabout is fair play," he answered. "A photo for a photo. You teased me with that sexy little lingerie piece last night…" He lifted a hand slowly and let it hover in the air between them. Her breath caught in her throat, her whole body tensed in anticipation of his touch. When it came, it was feather-light, just the faintest caress, his fingertips grazing across her collarbone before he dropped his hand to the table once more. "I'd like to see what's underneath."

If Tris' cheeks felt hot before, now they could start a fire. But the idea of sending him a photo of her breasts, something that would normally raise a whole lot of red flags on a first date, had her feeling hot and bothered instead. Would he look at her photo as he touched himself?

"Deal," Tris whispered, and his lips quirked into a grin. He was so close. Close enough that she could close the gap between them in a heartbeat, press her lips to his. She wanted to. She found herself tilting toward him, unstoppable, unable to fight the gravity.

That grin widened and he leaned back in his chair once more. Damn him. He knew what she wanted. And he was enjoying withholding it.

"That's all you want from me, huh? Just a dick pic?"

He said it loud enough that a couple at the table beside them glance over, eyes wide. Tris eyes widened too, and she ducked her head, face flushed.

"No, I—"

"It's cool." He winked. "I've been told its pretty addictive, so I can understand."

Tris aimed a kick at him under the table. "How long have you been in Chicago, Tobias?"

"Oh, we're not going back to boring first date interview questions already, are we?" He shook his head.

She laughed. "I'm just proving I want to know more about you than just how big you are."

"Three years," he replied. "First job I picked up when I moved here and I liked it."

He glanced down at her phone which was resting face-down on the table. "Speaking of which. If you did hypothetically want to know about me… I mean, since you asked."

Right on cue, her phone buzzed. Tris had to laugh, even as she picked it up. There, right on the home screen, was a new message. A photo attachment. She glanced back at him, leaned forward to check under the table. How did he send that so fast, without her even noticing?

"You came prepared?" Tris asked.

He smirked. "Maybe."

She opened the photo and immediately fought the urge to hide her phone. It was strange to look at his member while he was sitting right here across from her, out in the open. Especially in a public place where anyone could walk right past their table and see her phone.

Tobias must have sensed that she was debating closing it again because he snatched the phone from her and planted it face-up on the table. "You asked for this," he reminded Tris in a low voice. "You should enjoy it to the fullest."

So, she resisted the urge to hide and bend forward to take in the picture. This one was taken from a bedroom, she spied a duvet in the background. He was completely naked this time, not just pulling himself out of his boxers. And damn, he looked even better than she remembered. It was flushed, standing on its own. He was standing too, and as full as it was, it stood straight out from his body, strong and hard.

"Your turn," he murmured.

"What, here?" Tris cast a glance around the coffee shop.

"You're right." He stood and dropped a handful of change on the table, more than enough for a 20% tip. "They're about to close. What say we continue this next door? There's a little Irish pub on the corner, and the bartender owes me a few drinks on the house."

Tris trailed after him, heart pounding. As they exited the coffee shop, he caught her hand, and she winded her fingers through his, loving the feel of his thick, strong fingers enclosing hers, protective and possessive all at once.

The walk to the bar was far too short, mostly because once they get there, he let go of her hand again, and her skin burned where he was just touching her. Tris wanted nothing more than to grab his hand once more. Or better yet, pull him against her, crush their bodies together and pull his lips to her. She wanted to kiss that grin off his face, replace it with a sexy, sultry smile. She wanted to taste his mouth, his tongue. She wanted to kiss her way along his stubble-dusted jawline, down the side of his neck. She wanted him to push her up against this bar and take her right here.

Shit.

Calm down, Tris.

The bartender greeted Tobias by name, then caught sight of her and rested an elbow on the bar, eyes darting up and down her length with a smile of approval.

"You lucky bastard," Zeke, the bartender said.

Tobias got their drinks and led her to a back table. They took a seat in a far corner, a cozy little spot that she could definitely get used to. It was the kind of local dive that she loved best, not too pricey, not too crowded. Just the right number of locals who knew each other's names, and a bartender who remembered their favorite drinks.

They sipped on their drinks and talked a little bit about the neighborhood. Tobias grew up here since he was little apparently, and before long, he was regaling her with stories of what this place used to be like when he was younger. He was only a couple years older than her, she learned, which surprised her.

He told her how this pub had apparently been here all along, one of the only institutions that survived the real estate crash and then the following real estate explosion a few years later when rent prices started to recover. There used to be a big park next door, but about fifteen years ago they razed it to put up another apartment complex, and then in turn razed that to build a bigger, fancier complex.

It was intriguing hearing about all this history. Tris never really thought about the neighborhood, about what it used to be like before she moved in. Now it was ritzy as hell, with tons of boutique shops and fancy restaurants on every corner. She didn't mind that at all, but it was strange to think of what it must have been like for Tobias. To grow up here, to watch his neighborhood go through so many transformations.

Tris told him about her old neighborhood where she grew up. Before she realized it, they were on their third round of drinks, the first two compliments of the house, and she was feeling them. Not to mention, with every round, they had inched closer together, going from sitting across from one another at this table to side-by-side, to now, with Tobias' leg and side pressed against hers. She could feel his hips as he shifted in his chair, leaned closer against her. A spark flew through her when he draped his arm over the back of her chair, letting his fingertips trail along her arm.

"So," he murmured against her ear when they were halfway through their third drinks. "Earlier…"

"Mmhmm?" Tris tilted toward him, distracted by the faint graze of his lips against her earlobe, and the continued tingles along her arm as he traced his fingers lazily over her skin.

"You were going to return my favor."

She cast a sideways glance at him and found him grinning at her, a spark of mischief in his bright blue eyes. "What, here?"

He lifted his eyebrows. "Well, we aren't at the café anymore. And you know, they do have a bathroom…" His eyes darted to the far wall, to a little corridor that lead to the single stall at the back of the bar. It was only just visible from here, and not viewable from the rest of the bar since it was around a corner.

When she looked back at him, she was pretty sure her eyes were alight with the same kind of mischief. "Good point. So, you want me to go in there and…" She traced a fingertip down his chest, pause to tug gently at the collar of his shirt. "Strip?"

"Just your top, if you prefer." He let his gaze drop to her chest. "Though, I won't complain if you want to take off more…"

"That's going to cost you a lot more than just a cock pic," she replied, leaning in to let her forehead rest against his, their eyes locked as she grinned.

"Hmm… we'll see." His hands wandered down her sides, wrapped around her hips. Their breath mingled between them, barely an inch of air separating them. Tris wanted to close the gap so damn badly. She wanted to press her lips to his, taste him.

Instead, she decided it was time to give him a taste of his own teasing medicine. She pushed out of her seat and stood, snatching her phone on the way up.

"See you soon," she told him with a wink, and then she winded her way down the hall toward the restroom.

It was free, so she stepped inside and maneuvered in front of the mirror. For a pub bathroom, it was really not too shabby. It was clean, well-kept. She cast a glance at the door and decided to get this over with quickly. Luckily, she wore her favorite bra today, mostly as a private mood-booster this morning when she was exhausted and trying to force herself out of bed. It was red and lacy and lifted her girls to just the right height, giving her a hint of cleavage without going overboard. She pulled her dress off, so she was just in her panties and bra. She snapped a photo in the bra first. She hit send on that, then hesitated, glancing at herself in the mirror.

Tris had sent nude pics to guys before, of course. But only guys who she had been dating for a few months. Guys she trusted. And not even many of those. It was a lot to ask for a guy she only just met. She was all too aware of what could happen to girls who weren't careful, who sent nudes to guys who suddenly decided they wanted to take revenge on those same girls later.

But she had known Tobias for years, even if not intimately. And besides, he worked in the same place where she lived. He was not going to risk his position to mess with one of his customers, was he?

That made her pause.

And what if the flirtation went south? What if this lead nowhere, or worse, lead to a few hookups and a bad split? She would have to pass him every single day on her way in and out of the building. Constantly being reminded. Then again, they had come this far. She had photos of his cock on her phone. She would be constantly reminded no matter what happened now. She might as well take the leap into the deep end since she was already gone and gotten herself wet.

Her phone buzzed.

Tobias:Very nice.

She unclasped her bra and let it slide down her arms. She took a deep breath, faced herself in the mirror, and snapped another photo. In this one, she was grinning, just a little, sultry and sexy all at once. And her breasts were on full display, nipples hard from the cool air in here, and from the thought of who was about to see this picture. Tris hit send. Then she started to lift her bra back on.

That was when the door opened.

Tris gasped and dropped her phone into the sink, startled. Shit, she forgot to lock it.

But when she saw who it is, she froze in place.

Tobias turned the lock behind him, a wide grin on his face. "I have a policy about open doors," he said.

"What's that?" She asked, lifting her chin. Trying desperately to pretend that she was not standing here topless in a public restroom, staring at one of the hottest guys she had ever known.

"I always walk through them if I want what's on the other side." With that, he crossed the restroom in a single stride and caught her chin in one hand, wrapped his other arm around her waist. Next thing she knew, his lips collided with hers, and she forgot that she was half-naked, forgot where they were.

Tris forgot everything but Tobias.

His mouth parted, and his tongue invaded. Tris let him claim her, twined her tongue with his while their hands roamed across each other's bodies. She ran one hand through his hair, along the back of his neck, while her other hand traced the hem of his shirt. Slipped underneath to press her palm flat against his hot, bare back. He gripped her waist with both hands and crushed her tight against him. She could feel the hard press of his cock against her belly, and when she wriggled against him, he pulsed against her, groaned faintly into their kiss.

Tris tilted her head to let him kiss her more deeply, then gasped when he caught her lower lip between his teeth, bit down gently. His hands trailed up her waist to her breasts, and traced underneath, above, circling around them. His lips left hers and she gasped again in protest, but then she didn't have time to think about it, because he was kissing his way along her jawline, down the side of her neck. His stubble scratched against her soft skin, but she loved it, the sharp contrast between his stubble and his soft mouth, his hot tongue wet against her neck. He nipped at the skin just below her ear, and a shiver ran through her entire body as she crushed him tighter against her.

She groaned when he pulled away. "Tris, I have to ask you something."

"What?" she gasped out.

"Will you be my Valentine's date this weekend?" Tobias asked.

Tris burst out laughing. "Yes."

"Good, because if this is just our first date imagine the rest." Tobias said.


End file.
